Brunch for Guests: Poached Eggs in Tomato Sauce

Last fall my cousin came in from out of town, and brought his then-girlfriend and a couple of their friends to stay with us for the weekend. Trying to be the ever-pleasing hostess, I made them a lot of food! We had other activities planned during the day, so I only had two breakfasts with which to woo them. I had been eyeing several recipes of eggs poached in a tomato sauce, and decided to try it out for my guests. They loved it so much that I am still hearing about it over a year later.

My cousin and his girlfriend have since gotten engaged and I will be attending their bridal shower this weekend. A tradition in our family is to have guests bring a recipe to the shower to share with the couple. My cousin and his fiancée actually requested for this recipe to be my contribution to their "recipe book".

Poached Eggs in Tomato Sauce is the ultimate comfort food, as it is warm, filling, and can be eaten for any meal (breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner, and even a late night snack!). It also comes together quickly and is made mainly with staple pantry items (feel free to omit the fresh herbs if you don't have them on hand). I make this pretty frequently for me and my husband to eat for dinner!

Poached Eggs in Tomato Sauce
Ingredients
1 can (14 ounces) diced tomatoes
1 can (6 oz.) tomato paste (preferably with Italian seasoning)
2 tablespoons olive oil, separated
1 clove garlic, minced
1 clove garlic, whole and sliced in half
Splash of white wine
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
4 large eggs
4 slices country bread, for serving
Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, for serving
1 tablespoon chopped fresh Italian parsley, for garnish

Directions
Preheat oven to 350ºF.

In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic and crushed red pepper and cook for 1 minute. Stir in tomato paste and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Deglaze the pan with a splash of white wine. Add canned tomatoes (including the juice) and bring to a boil; season salt and pepper. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes.

Gently crack eggs into tomato mixture, cover, and let cook 5 minutes. Remove skillet from heat, uncover, and let stand 2 to 3 minutes.

Meanwhile, use remaining olive oil and brush oil on both sides of bread slices. Lay bread slices on a baking sheet, and bake in oven for approximately 10 minutes (until bread is golden and crusty). Remove bread from oven and rub immediately rub each side of bread with halves of garlic clove.

Transfer each egg to a piece of toasted bread. Spoon over sauce, garnish with cheese and parsley, and season with salt and pepper; serve immediately.

Easy Brunch Scramble: Kate's Scrumptious Scramble

My husband and I are not “breakfast people”. On any given day, he has coffee (black) and a banana, and I have a sugar-free Red Bull and some granola. This is about as much as we can take in the morning. (I think our logic on foregoing breakfast is that we sleep in until the last second possible, and therefore leave no time for breakfast.)

We do, however, enjoy breakfast food. We really got into this while living in NYC and partaking in weekend brunch. What a wonderful activity brunch is in the city! It combines both breakfast and lunch items on one menu (genius!) so there is something for everyone. You want an omelet? No problem! A sandwich and fries? Easy! Unlimited mimosas? Always! (Yes, that last item is why we really went to brunch all of the time.) Brunch in NYC lasts from around 10:00 am – 4:00 pm, so you can go anytime of the day (= sleeping in and still enjoying breakfast food!) Our favorite brunch place, for anyone who is in the area, is Arte Café on West 73rd near Columbus. They have a terrific brunch, a romantic patio, and of course, unlimited drinks! And Arte Café is two blocks from our church, so we can go to mass, and then pass the day away with Bellini’s and the delicious muffins the waiters bring around in the large wicker baskets.

While I’ve done my own take on a NYC Brunch before, as of late, brunch in our house has been a bit lighter, quicker, and more sober. A recipe I tried several weeks ago and have been repeating since is Ellie Krieger’s Scrumptious Scramble. It has been particularly delicious with the fresh tomatoes I’ve been purchasing from my local farmers’ market and the fresh chives I've been using from my "garden". You can follow the link above for Ellie’s recipe, but here is a version with my modifications:

Kate's Scrumptious Scramble
* Cooking spray
* 1/4 cup green onion, chopped
* 1 fresh tomato, diced
* 1 cup of Eggbeaters (or other egg substitute)
* 2 egg whites
* 2 tablespoons water, optional
* 1 tablespoon fresh dill, finely chopped, or 1 teaspoon dried dill
* 2 tablespoons fresh chives, chopped
* Salt and pepper

In a medium sized, non-stick skillet, heat pan over medium heat and spray with cooking spray. In a medium bowl lightly beat together the Eggbeaters, egg whites and water, if using. Season with salt and pepper. Pour the egg mixture into the skillet and cook over a medium-low flame, stirring frequently, until the eggs are almost set. Add tomatoes, green onions and dill and gently mix into eggs. Garnish with chives.

I’ve served this with sliced avocado, a light green salad, fresh fruit, yogurt, and on this particular day, Zingerman’s 8-grain 3-seed bread and Arkansas Peppered Bacon.